The present invention relates to electrical connector shell assemblies and in particular to an assembly with a seal between two connector shells.
Connectors for coupling electrical cables consisting of a plurality of individual leads are well known. Such connectors are generally used in electronic systems to electrically couple the various components together. In many systems such as aircraft systems, military vehicle systems and the like, the connectors must operate without failing in severe climatic, vibrational or electrical interference environments. Despite the large number of connector designs, present day connectors are still subject to failures due to these factors. Such failures can result in the failure of an entire system.
To solve such failure problems, various maintenance programs have been initiated to prevent the failures before they happen. However, it is still an objective to obtain a connector which will have substantially greater immunity to failure due to vibration or climatic conditions and will provide a greater degree of shielding against electromagnetic interference.
Therefore, in accordance with the present invention, a connector shell assembly is provided which incorporates an annular frusto-conical ring which is mounted to one of two connector shells with a facing radially disposed seal surface on the opposite connector shell so that when the two connector shells are brought into coupling relationship with each other, the outermost edge of the frusto-conical ring meets and presses against the sealing surface to be resiliently deformed axially to form a metal-to-metal annular continuous seal between the two connector shells. This seal has been found to prevent contaminates from entering the central junction region between leads on the inside of the connector. For example, when fully mated, the continuous, annular metal-to-metal seal between the two shells prevents the passage of moisture into the junction between the two shells thereby significantly decreasing the possibility of electrical shorting between leads.
In addition, the annular continuous seal creates metal to metal bottoming about the entire circumference of the shell junction enabling the connector to successfully withstand significantly higher vibrational conditions than was possible before.
Finally, the present connector, when fully mated, has been found to effectively shield the electrical leads from high levels of electromagnetic interference.
Therefore, the present invention provides a significantly improved connector shell assembly which greatly reduces connector failures due to vibration, electromagnetic interference and extreme climatic conditions.